The Thirteenth Year
by Im-On-A-Roll
Summary: Harold turns thirteen and discovers that he is a merman! If ya wanna know what I mean, read this story! And Review! The Final Chapter is up!
1. Chapter 1

Hey there everyone! This Fan Fiction is about, you guessed it, Harold. But let me ask you this; have you ever imagined Harold as a merman? And yes I mean merman as in a guy form of Ariel. Allow me to explain. Have a few of you ever seen that Disney movie called "The Thirteenth Year?" If not, I'll give a quick summary. A baby merman is left on land by his mother. He becomes a human and is raised by a human couple for the rest of his childhood. But when he turns thirteen, he finds out he's a merman and he returns to the ocean with his mermother. Well I just thought that since Harold is thirteen years old, wouldn't it be cool if that same thing happened to him? I'll answer that…YES!! By the way, Harold's real parents (Jerry and Marilyn) are both in this story and are both merpeople as well. As for Harold's adoptive parents, I was thinking Ray Rocket from Rocket Power raising Harold by himself.

**The Thirteenth Year**

_Chapter 1_

It was a wonderfully bright summer's day. And it was especially great because today was Harold Rocket's thirteenth birthday. Harold was a sweet kid who, even though he was usually a little rough around the edges, had a heart as big as his stomach. Today was also his first day of summer vacation and pretty soon he would be in the eighth grade. But for today, he was just gonna kick back, relax, and have a great birthday at the beach with his dad.

Harold's father, Ray Rocket, was the definition of great dad. He cared a lot for his only son and couldn't have been happier that today he was the father of a teenager. Ray was a tall and good-looking man, despite being in his mid-forties. But he was also single and had been single his entire life, which meant he had adopted Harold. This was perfectly understandable because Ray was so physically fit and Harold was a little more on the heavier side. But even though Harold had no idea who or where his real parents were, he loved Ray with all his heart.

"So tell me, Son," Ray said Harold when they arrived at the beach and began unpacking their stuff. "How does it feel to officially be a teenager?"

"It feels great, Dad!" Harold replied. "I feel like I wanna do things I never wanted to do before because I was too scared to."

"Like what?" Ray asked.

"Like…go deep-sea snorkeling!"

Ray almost dropped their cooler full of soda when Harold said this. "Wow. You really _are_ becoming a man," Ray admitted. "You'd always chicken out whenever I offered to take you snorkeling before."

"I didn't _always_ chicken out!" Harold whined.

Ray pulled Harold's baseball cap down so that it covered up his eyes.

"Okay, maybe I did," Harold admitted. "So, can I go snorkeling or what?"

Ray giggled. "Okay, you're the birthday boy."

"YES!"

"Here. Take these with you." Ray handed Harold a pair of goggles and flippers. Harold threw off his shirt and sandals and put on the goggles and flippers, and then ran off to the ocean. "Later, Dad!"

"Don't go too far, Harold! And be back in time for lunch!" Ray called.

"Okay!" Harold replied.

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Harold was so fascinated by all the amazing things he saw while he was snorkeling. He saw at least fifteen different kinds of fish, almost every kind of sea shell in the world, sea urchins, jellyfish (which he was careful not to touch), and seahorses.

Then suddenly, something else caught his eye. The tail of an emerald-colored fish. But not just any fish, no. This fish, judging by the size of the tail and fin, must've been the exact same size as him. Maybe even bigger. But Harold could only see the tail because the rest of the fish was hidden behind a huge boulder.

Harold swam up to the boulder to try to get a better look of the rest of this mysterious fish. But when he reached the boulder and was finally able to see the rest of the fish, he froze where he was. The emerald green tailfin wasn't the tail of a fish; it was that of a merman.

Harold stared wide-eyed through his goggles at the merman. It, or he, was about a head taller than him and looked almost just like Harold. The merman looked about in his forties and was completely bald except for the sides and back of his head, which were covered with short, curly, light brown hair that matched his mustache and single eyebrow. He was also wearing glasses and, like pretty much every merman, he was wearing no shirt. He this merman was a little on the heavy side but at the same time he was handsome.

Oh and one last thing. The merman was wide-awake and was staring right into Harold's eyes.

"Harold?" said the merman in a soft, gentle voice. "Is it you, Son?"

_End of Chapter 1_

_Ooh, Cliffhanger!_


	2. Chapter 2: Jerry's Tale

_Chapter 2_

Harold could not believe what the merman had just asked him. He wanted to ask him if he had the wrong guy, but since they were underwater he couldn't. Harold gestured to the surface of the water in a way of saying "I can only talk above water, follow me."

"Oh," said the merman. "I forgot humans can't talk or breathe underwater. Sorry about that, Son."

The two of them swam up to the surface so Harold could ask the millions of questions that were burning inside his head. But since he had so many questions, he had no idea where to begin. Should he start with who was this guy and why did he have a tail? Or maybe he should ask why he kept calling him "Son" and how he knew his name. At last his moment came.

The two of them surfaced. Harold lifted his goggles and breathed heavily. The merman on the other hand didn't need to breathe so hard seeing as he could obviously breathe underwater and above it.

"Can you talk now, Harold?"

"Yeah, I can," Harold said once he caught his breath.

"Good."

"And let me just ask a few small questions."

"Shoot," said the merman.

"Okay," Harold began. "First of all, WHO THE HECK ARE YOU AND WHY DO YOU KEEP CALLING ME SON?"

"Well…"

"AND I ALWAYS THOUGHT MERMAIDS WERE SUPPOSED TO BE A MYTH!"

"Hey…"

"AND HOW DO YOU KNOW MY NAME?"

"Because…"

"WHY AREN'T YOU ANSWERING ME? ANSWER ME!"

"I'm not answering you because you won't let me talk," replied the merman.

"Oh, right. Sorry."

"Well first and foremost I'm not a mermaid, I'm a mer_man_. And we are not myths."

"Sorry, I didn't know there was a word for a _guy_ mermaid." Harold felt way stupid.

"That's okay. Secondly, my name is Jerry. I'm your father and I gave you the name Harold."

"Whoa, I'm so confused right now." Harold held his head in his hands. "My dad always told me I was adopted, but I never knew my real parents were fish."

Jerry's smile vanished. "Hey! Watch your mouth, Mister."

"Sorry, merpeople."

Jerry smiled once more and he continued talking. "Okay, here's how it goes."

Harold listened to Jerry's story.

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_(Thirteen years ago)_

_A terrible storm had struck the ocean late in the afternoon on a summer's day. The sea was rough and the sky was full of dark clouds. If anybody on land wanted to go out on the ocean in their boat, they'd have to wait until tomorrow. As for animals and people that lived in the ocean, they had to deal with it no matter what. _

_All merpeople were forced to flee their homes and get to the bay. There they would sit on rocks and wait until the storm cleared. At the exact same time, they would have to avoid being seen by any humans. They were lucky because no humans would dare come outside in a storm like this._

_Jerry, his wife Marilyn, and one-day-old Harold lived more far away from the shore than any other merpeople, so they had to swim a long, long way. Marilyn, who was holding on to Harold, handed him to Jerry. _

"_Hold onto him until we get there, Jerry!" Marilyn yelled over the roar of the ocean._

"_Okay!" _

_They ordinarily wouldn't be swimming on the surface, but since they were so far away from their destination they had to so that they could see where they were going. _

_It took them almost half-an-hour to reach the bay and the storm had gotten much worse. Lightning was striking way too close to the earth and all merpeople feared being hit. Then, suddenly, their greatest fear had come true. _

"_AHH!" _

_A huge bolt of lightning struck Marilyn's entire body before the family could even reach the bay. After the lightning had finished, Marilyn's body disappeared beneath the monstrous waves. _

"_MARILYN!" Jerry yelled with Harold still in his hands. _

_Jerry tried to locate his wife, but the fierce ocean had carried away her body. What was the use? No one could be struck by lightning and live to tell about it, not even a mermaid._

_Jerry reached the rocky bay still clutching his son and with tears in his eyes. He found a rock to sit on and waited with the other merpeople for the storm to pass. _

_In the end, it took until eight at night for the terrible storm to end. All the merpeople returned to the ocean with the exception of Jerry, who had a serious question in his head. Harold had only been alive for more than a day and had no mother to give him milk. And since there was no other milk in the ocean to feed him, Jerry was placed in a terrible position. How was he going to raise his baby son all by himself? Especially when there was no food to give him for the time being?  
_

_And then it hit him. He would leave Harold on land so that he would become a human and be raised by a human couple. After all, a merman or mermaid could walk on land with legs, but only until they reached their thirteenth birthday. Jerry wished he could stay on land with Harold, but he had already been thirteen. Harold would live his childhood as a human boy until he would be ready to return._

_Jerry carefully set his merbaby down on the rock. After about ten seconds, Harold's blue tail vanished and a pair of human legs took its place. Jerry kissed Harold on his head._

"_Goodbye, Harold. I love you, and I promise I'll hold you in my arms again soon."_

_With that Jerry returned to the ocean, but did not return to his home. Instead he found a nearby boat and hid behind it. He would stay there until he was sure Harold would be found and taken to a safe home. Then, Harold began to cry. He cried so loud that Jerry heard a voice coming from the boat he was hiding behind. _

"_What the heck was that?" said the voice._

_Then, Ray Rocket ran out of the boat and towards the rocks. Then he found the source of the crying and picked him up with a look of happiness. Jerry smiled. He knew Harold would be safe with this human. _

_"Aw, hey there little guy," said Ray. "Where'd you come from?" He looked all around for any sign of this baby's parents. After a few seconds, Harold started to crying again. "I bet you're hungry, huh?" Ray asked. "Come on, I'll get you something to eat. Then we'll start looking for your parents. I bet they're worried sick." Ray looked at Harold as if he had always wanted a child and took him inside his boat. _

_Once Jerry knew Harold was safe, he took one last look at him and returned to his home. _

_End of chapter 2_


	3. Chapter 3: The Transformation Begins

_Chapter 3_

_(Present)_

"All that really happened?" Harold asked when Jerry finished his story. "And you really are my dad?"

Jerry nodded.

Then Harold realized something. "And today's my thirteenth birthday."

"That's right," Jerry said.

"So what's gonna happen now?"

"Well, you won't officially start to transform until…"

"Wait! Did you just say _transform?_" Harold asked in shock.

"Yes. You see, today is your last day of walking. Tomorrow morning you'll slowly begin to change back into a merman. And then you'll be able to live with me in the ocean again."

Harold had never been so puzzled in his entire life. "Is the transformation gonna hurt?" he asked.

"It might, but it will be even worse if you don't get to the ocean by the time it's complete," Jerry warned.

"Why?" Harold asked. "What happens if I don't?"

Jerry shut his eyes. "If you don't, you'll die."

"WHAT?"

"I know. It's a terrible thing, but there's nothing anyone can do to change it," said Jerry.

"Well if I _do_ get back to the ocean by then, can I ever become a human again?"

Jerry nodded no.

"Well my dad has a pool in our backyard. Can't he just keep me in there for the rest of my life?"

"I'm afraid merpeople can only stay in saltwater. Otherwise we might as well die on land."

"So either way, I'll never see my human dad again." A few tears rolled down Harold's eye.

"Son, I know all this might be shocking and I know it's all unexpected. But it's the only way." Jerry put his hand on Harold's shoulder. "I've already lost your mother. I don't want to lose my only son too, especially after thirteen years of waiting for him to return."

Harold still sobbed.

"Besides," Jerry continued, "Do you think your human dad will want to see you die? Letting your son go to live a new life is better than watching him die."

Harold thought about this and decided Jerry was right. "Okay," he said silently. "I'll make sure my dad gets me here in time."

Jerry smiled. "I promise I'll be the best father you could ever have asked for."

Harold smiled. "Thanks Jer…Dad."

"HAROLD!" called Ray's voice.

Harold snapped out of his shock. "That's my human dad," he said to Jerry. "I gotta go."

"I'll see you tomorrow, Son." Jerry hugged Harold goodbye and then disappeared beneath the water.

"COMING, DAD!" Harold called back to Ray.

Harold dogpaddled his way back to the beach so he and his human dad could have lunch.

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That night, Harold had the hardest time getting to sleep. Everything Jerry had told him that morning was still swimming inside his mind.

He kept thinking about his mermother being killed by a lightning bolt and Jerry leaving him there on the rocks. About how he was about to go through the biggest change of his life. But most of all, about how hard it was gonna be to say goodbye to Ray. He hadn't even told Ray that during his little snorkeling trip today, he happened to run into his biological father who just so happened to be a merman. How was Ray going to believe that Harold was part fish?

Surprisingly even though Harold's mind was so full of questions, he fell asleep in just one hour and began dreaming.

Harold dreamed that he was swimming in the ocean. But the weird thing was that he was communicating with every fish he saw and he didn't even have to hold his breath underwater. Then he saw Jerry swimming up to him with a loving smile on his face. Harold smiled also and swam up to Jerry. When Harold reached him, Jerry stretched out his arms as if to hug him and Harold did the same. But all of a sudden, a painful feeling in Harold's right leg caused him to wake up.

Harold's alarm clock read that it was eight o'clock in the morning so it was good that this feeling decided to happen during the day.

Harold pulled his bedspread off of him and looked down at his right leg. It felt as if it was on fire but it looked completely normal. But then Harold's foot started to turn blue right before his eyes. As it slowly turned blue, it began to grow longer and thinner until it was webbed. Harold's foot had turned into a fin!

Then he remembered what Jerry had told him yesterday. If he didn't get to the ocean by the time the transformation was complete, he would die!

Harold, not knowing what else to do and being unable to get up and walk, began screaming for his dad.

_End of Chapter 3_


	4. Chapter 4: The Transformation is Complet

_Chapter 4_

"DAD!" Harold began to panic as he watched his right leg growing blue scales. "DAD!"

At last, Ray appeared in Harold's doorway. "What is it, Haro…AH!" He almost passed out when he saw what was happening to his son's leg. "HAROLD, WHAT'S HAPPENING TO YOU?"

"I'll explain later," Harold said in a panicked voice. "Right now I need you to get me to the beach!"

Ray looked at Harold with a dumbfounded look. "THE BEACH?!" he yelled. "ARE YOU CRAZY? The only place we're going is the hospital!"

"NO, DAD!" Harold screamed.

"WHAT DO YOU MEAN NO? YOU'RE LEG…"

"I know, Dad. But it's just gonna get worse if you don't get me to the ocean!"

Ray didn't say a word.

"Trust me, Dad!" Harold begged.

After about ten seconds, Ray sighed. "I just hope you know what you're doing," he said.

"I do," said Harold. "Now hurry up, we don't have much time!"

Ray lifted Harold up from his bed and hurriedly ran out the front door and into his car. It was a good thing the two of them lived just twenty minutes away from the beach.

After five minutes of driving, Harold's entire right leg was completely covered in dark blue scales. Pretty soon, he began breathing heavily. He was losing his ability to breath on dry land. Then his left leg developed the same feeling that his right leg had when he had woken up. Harold and Ray began panicking harder than ever. Harold knew he had very little time left. He had to get to the ocean ASAP.

When they finally arrived at the beach, Harold's legs were both blue and scaly and he had almost completely lost his breath. Ray quickly helped him out of the car and ran to the ocean. Harold was way too heavy for Ray to carry and the sand burned his bare feet, but they succeeded.

Ray fell into the shallow water while he was still running and he accidentally dropped Harold.

Once Harold felt the cool water touch his dry body, he started to breathe like he normally would. Ray, who was still on his knees, scooped Harold up in his arms and looked down at him sadly. "Harold," he said with a shaky but gentle voice, "What's happening to you?"

As you can imagine, Harold wasn't sure how to answer this. He looked out onto the horizon expecting to see Jerry. And in just three seconds, Jerry burst out of the water about ten feet away and began swimming towards them. Harold looked at him with a smile, but Ray looked at him as if he would to any human stranger. This is because since Jerry was only above the surface from the waste up, his tail could not be seen.

"Who are you?" Ray asked Jerry.

"My name is Jerry."

"Well, Jerry, not to be rude or anything but…" Then Jerry got close enough to them so that Ray could see the rest of him. Ray stared at Jerry's emerald green tail in total shock. "Oh my…Oh my…Oh my…" Ray stuttered stupidly.

Jerry ignored Ray and threw his arm around Harold's shoulders. "You made it," he said to Harold.

Before Harold could say a word, Ray began to scream. "WHAT ARE YOU DOING?" he yelled at Jerry. "I DON'T KNOW WHAT THE HECK YOU ARE, BUT GET AWAY FROM MY SON BEFORE I CALL THE COPS…OR ANIMAL CONTROL!"

"Dad!" Harold snapped.

"WHAT?"

"It's okay," Harold assured. "This is my…This is my real dad." He rested his head against Jerry's shoulder.

"What?" Ray asked calmly but sadly. He turned to Jerry. "Wait, you're a mermaid."

Jerry sighed. "Do I have to draw you humans a picture? I'm a mer_man_!"

"Sorry," said Ray. "And you're Harold's biological father?"

Jerry nodded.

Then Ray looked at Harold. "Then that means…"

"Yeah, Dad," said Harold. "I'm a merman too."

"And the transformation is nearly complete," said Jerry.

"What transformation?" Ray asked.

Harold rolled his eyes and pointed down at his blue, scaly legs.

"Oh."

"Dad, there's really no easy way to say this. But in a few minutes, I'm gonna be a merman and I'm gonna have to live with my real dad."

"What? No, Harold, you can't! You're my son!"

"But Dad, look at me. Besides, if I stay on land any longer, I'll die."

Ray took almost a whole minute to think this through, and then decided that Harold was right. "Okay, Harold." Ray wrapped his arms around Harold for the last time ever. "I love you, Son."

"I love ya too."

At last they separated. Harold took off his shirt and handed it to Ray. Then he reached up to take off his cap, but Ray stopped him. "I want you to keep your cap."

"Why?" Harold asked.

"So you'll always remember the person who gave it to you," Ray replied.

Harold smiled and left his cap on his head.

"Let's go, Harold. You'll be a merman in just a few more seconds," said Jerry.

"Okay, Dad."

Harold and Jerry swam out to the deeper part of the ocean. Ray never took his tearful eyes off of Harold until they went down.

Harold could hardly believe it, he could breathe underwater. Then he felt his legs beginning to magnetically draw towards each other. He felt that Ray deserved to watch this. He swam up to the surface as fast as he could and then broke it.

Ray and Jerry watched as Harold jumped fifteen feet into the air with his legs still detached. While he was still in the air, his legs magically pulled towards each other and finally attached to form a fish's tail. The transformation was complete and Harold was now officially a merman.

He dived back into the water and surfaced one last time to wave goodbye to Ray. Ray waved back for a whole forty-five seconds and then they both turned around to leave.

Once Harold was back underneath the ocean, he swam up to Jerry and the two mermen hugged tightly.

"Welcome home, Son," Jerry said.

Harold closed his eyes and nuzzled Jerry's bare chest. This was the single greatest day of his life, but he would have to get used to having a dad who smelled like fish. After twenty minutes of hugging, Jerry pulled away but Harold didn't stop.

"Uh, Harold?" said Jerry. "You know you can stop now, don't you?"

"I don't wanna stop, Dad," Harold said. "I don't ever wanna leave you again."

"Aw." Jerry kissed his son on the head. "Let's go home, Son."

"Okay."

Jerry began swimming home with Harold still clinging onto his chest. He didn't mind though, he was glad he finally had a son that would snuggle up to him.

_The End_


End file.
